Page 64 of Summer of Love (Costas Sisters 2)
Ryan didn’t buy her wide green-eyed stare for a minute. She wanted to find out if his uncle somehow had a vested interest in those keys. Still, he had to admit, Zoe had gotten him curious and if his uncle was as innocent as he believed, why not see if they could figure out what Faith had used the keys for? Why she’d kept them and passed them on to her daughter.
“I think it could be a way for Sam to learn more about her mother,” he said, thinking Zoe’s idea through.
Zoe nodded. “It’s a long shot that we’ll ever know the truth about her necklace, but at least we’ll have looked into the last link to your sister.”
“I can live with that,” he told her.
She smiled, obviously happy with his agreement. At least one of them was. Now that she’d raised the specter of his uncle’s odd behavior, her notion lingered in his mind. He only hoped Sam’s keys held answers that put her suspicions about his uncle to rest.
Just as Zoe had thought, once they explained to Sam that the keys might provide more insight into her mother, she willingly handed them over to Zoe. All it took was a cursory examination for Zoe to discover the words Wayham Bus Depot, which it turned out was located in a small town about twenty minutes from Ryan’s family home.
The big question was what to do with Sam since neither Ryan nor Zoe wanted to take the teenager along and subject her to potential disappointment or upset if the keys turned out to be a dead end or something disturbing like a drug stash. There was also the fact that someone did want something from Sam and she couldn’t be left alone for even a second.
Fate intervened in the form of Ryan’s mother. To their surprise, she called to ask if she could spend time alone with Faith’s daughter. Zoe’s gut instinct was to rebel against the notion, but in her heart, she understood that this woman was Sam’s grandmother and any form of bonding was best for all involved, especially Sam. The teenager knew little about her mother’s life growing up. After Ryan had given his mother a stern lecture, the older woman agreed to choose her words carefully when she spoke to Sam about her mother.
With luck, Vivian could help Sam feel a part of this family and make her feel more grounded when it came to her past. With luck, Zoe thought, still not completely trusting any members of the Baldwin family other than Ryan.
It took some convincing to get Sam to go back to the Baldwins’ without Zoe and Ryan tagging along, but Ryan promised her she could pick her favorite food for dinner and then during the week go shopping at Baldwin’s.
Zoe suspected it was the shopping bribe that did the trick, and they dropped Sam off with her grandmother along with strict orders: if asked, she was to say that Ryan and Zoe were off spending time together. Nothing more, not to anyone.
Ryan remained silent during the ride until Zoe couldn’t take being frozen out anymore. “I’m sorry,” she said at last.
One hand on the wheel, he briefly turned toward her. “For?”
That was a good question, Zoe thought. For causing distrust and upheaval in his life? For not just handing Sam over like she was a possession?
“For accusing your uncle,” she said, addressing only one of the many issues between them.
He shrugged. “Just because he’s been good to me doesn’t mean he’s the easiest person to know or like. I hope this little trip will convince you that his interest in Sam is genuine.”
But from his tight jaw and steely expression, she didn’t believe him. She wondered if his internal turmoil had anything to do with the fear that perhaps she was on to something with his uncle, then tossed that notion aside. In his mind, blood ties ran deep, loyalty ran even deeper, and his uncle had been his only friend in a conflicted upbringing.
“How much longer till we get there?” she asked, glancing at the dashboard clock.
“About ten minutes. We have time. So tell me something.”
She was happy to have conversation. “What do you want to know?”
“More about you. I know all about your family life, but I don’t know that much about you.”
“I’m an open book.”
He raised an eyebrow at that. “Ha.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just that you talk this nice game about openness and being yourself, yet I don’t know much about you. Who are your friends outside of your family?”
She opened her mouth in surprise. “Are you insinuating I don’t have friends?”
“I didn’t meet any besides family while I stayed with you.”
“My work kept me very busy and away from home. I have agency friends I left behind and some I see for drinks every once in a while,” she said, feeling extremely defensive. “What about you? I haven’t noticed a whole lot of messages from guys asking you to go to a Red Sox game or out for a beer. Or is it that you’re too good for a cold brew?”
